Anderson Strathern Asset Management (ASAM) chief executive, John Brett, has set his sights on one of the top spots in the Scottish investment advisory market.

Former head of global distribution at Aberdeen Asset Management, Mr Brett arrived at ASAM in September with the remit of making the business one of the best.

He said: “The first few months in the job have focused on how we can deliver the very best possible proposition to clients. While we are small enough to react quickly to a fast-changing wealth management market, where possible I also want to bring in some of the best practices from the larger institutions I’ve had experience of.”

“There are a lot of uncertainties out there at the moment when you think about Brexit and Trump, factors that mean investment managers need to take a responsible approach to asset management and that’s something we’re finding chimes with more and more of our client base.”

In his first significant appointment since taking up leadership at ASAM, Mr Brett has appointed Shane Presley from Close Brothers Asset Management as a senior private wealth manager. Mr Presley has over 20 years’ financial planning experience with private clients.

He said: “Coming into to ASAM under the leadership of John Brett was something I could not pass up the opportunity to do. John and ASAM have a firm focus on the future, ensuring best practice and growth.

I have spent my career advising private individuals to make smart financial decisions to achieve important things in their lives. With ASAM linked to the law firm and its exceptional range of clients, I am looking forward to helping our clients and ASAM realise their ambitions.”

Mr Brett added: “We’re also adding to the quality of the team here and guys like Shane are considered ‘gold standard’ in the industry with credentials as both a Chartered Wealth Manager and a Certified Financial Planner.

“We’ll be looking to make more hires at this level as we aim for a top spot in the Scottish market in 2017 and are confident we can do that by offering the best advisory services around. We’re never going to be the biggest, but we do believe we can be the best.”